Farrow & Ball Old White No.4

Old White No.4 is a mid white from the Farrow & Ball Signature Palette, with warm orange undertones. It sits in the mid band of the Farrow & Ball palette. It holds its character in both daylight and lamplight without dominating a room, which makes it as comfortable on a full set of walls as it is on joinery.

Using Old White in a scheme

White Tie No.2002 is the white to run with it — it shares the same undertone, so ceilings, cornices and skirtings stay in the same key. For a scheme built on one colour, step up to New White No.59 on walls and down to Light Gray No.17 on joinery.

Try it first

A 100ml Sample Pot of Old White is supplied ready-mixed in Estate Emulsion and covers roughly a square metre — enough to paint a test patch and live with it in your own light for a day or two before ordering a full tin.

Available finishes

• Sample Pot — testing a colour on the wall before you commit (2% sheen)
• Dead Flat — ultra-matt walls, woodwork and metal (2% sheen)
• Estate Emulsion — interior walls and ceilings in low-traffic rooms (2% sheen)
• Modern Emulsion — washable, scuff-proof walls and ceilings in kitchens and bathrooms (7% sheen)
• Flat Eggshell — interior wood, metal, concrete and floors (20% sheen)
• Modern Eggshell — hard-wearing wood and metal, including floors and staircases (40% sheen)

Priming and light

Prime bare or previously painted surfaces with Farrow & Ball Mid Tones Primer & Undercoat. Matching the primer to the depth of Old White gives truer colour and usually saves you a topcoat. Mid tones are the most changeable colours in an Irish room — bright on a clear morning, much deeper by four o'clock in winter. Live with a tester first.

Colour reference

• Colour number: No.4
• Hex: #C7BFAB
• RGB: 199, 191, 171
• Colour family: Whites
• Collection: Signature Palette
• Light reflectance value (LRV): see Farrow & Ball colour card

Mixed to order at Foy & Company

Every tin of Old White is mixed to order on our Farrow & Ball tinting system from the correct Farrow & Ball base, so you get genuine Farrow & Ball paint in the finish and size you need. Nationwide delivery across Ireland.